nor, and Jack, I thought, a little younger than
me.

"How d'ye do, Margery?" said Jack, shaking me warmly by the hand. "I'm
awfully glad to hear the news about you; we shall be all square now, two
and two, like a quadrille."

"How do you do, Miss Vandaleur?" said Clement.

"Look here, Eleanor," Jack broke in again; "I'll drive Margery home in
the donkey-carriage, and you can go with Clem in the cab. I wish you'd
give me the wreath off your hat, too."

Eleanor willingly agreed, the wreath was adjusted on Jack's hat, and we
were just taking our places, when he caught sight of the luggage that
had fallen out on Clement's side of the cab--some fishing-rods, a
squirrel in a fish-basket, and a hat-box.

"Oh!" he screamed, "there's my hat-box! Take the reins, Margery!" and he
flew over the wheel, and returned, hat-box in hand.

"Is it a new hat?" I asked sympathizingly.

"A hat!" he scornfully exclaimed. "My hat's loose in the cab somewhere,
if it came at all; but all my beetles are in here, pinned to the sides.
Would you mind taking it on your knee, to be safe?"

And having placed it there, he scrambled once more into the front seat,
and we were about to start (the cab was waiting for us, the cabman
looking on with a grim smile at Jack, whilst energetic Eleanor
rearranged the luggage inside), when there came a second check.

"Have you got a pin?" Jack asked me.

"I'll see," said I; "what for?"

"To touch up Neddy with. We're going home a rattler."

But on my earnestly remonstrating against the pin, Jack contented
himself with pointing a stick, which he assured me would "hurt much
more."

"Now, cabby!" he cried, "keep your crawler back till we're well away.
You'd better let us go first, or we might pass you on the road, and hurt
the feelings of that spirited beast of yours. Do you like going fast,
Margery?"

"As fast as you like," said I.

I knew nothing whatever of horses and donkeys, or of what their poor
legs could bear; but I very much liked passing swiftly through the air.
I do not think Neddy suffered, however, though we went back at a pace
marvellously different from that at which we came. We were very light
weights, and Master Neddy was an overfed, underworked gentleman, with
the acutest discrimination as to his drivers. Jack's voice was quite
enough; the stick was superfluous. When we came to the top of the steep
hill leading down to the village, Jack asked me, "Shall we go down a
rattler?"

"Oh,